ES2264956T3 - SPRAY DEVICE, MAINLY FOR AGRICULTURAL USE. - Google Patents

Abstract

Spray device including a main tank (2) of the carrier product, at least one tank (4, 8) of chemical intended to be mixed with the carrier product, a spray ramp (12) as well as a pump (10) located afterwards from the main tank (2) allowing the carrier product of the main tank to be sent under pressure to the spray ramp. characterized by the means (34) provided to create a calibrated depression between the main tank outlet (2) of the carrier product and the pump inlet (10) and by the connection of each chemical tank (4, 8) to an injection line (18) that is between the main tank (2) and the pump (10) by means of devices (38, 40, 42) that allow injecting in this line the chemical that is in the tank of corresponding chemical.

Description

Spray device, mainly for agricultural use.

The invention described below is a spraying device, mainly for agricultural use.

For the treatment of crops, the most current is to use a sprayer mounted on the back of a tractor. Such a sprayer is made up of a tank and a spray ramp. A pump is used to give pressure to the product leaving the tank and sending it to the ramp of spray.

Usually, the tank contains water where it Dissolve concentrated chemicals. This presents certain inconvenience When the tank content is not used by complete in a spray, it must be emptied and follow a special process since the products used cannot get into the sewer. This process is heavy and leads to loss of the product that was in the tank and that has not been used. Also, before using the tank again, you have to wash it in accordance with current European standards. This cleaning should be carried out according to a special process, providing for the recovery of Water used for rinsing.

Classic sprayers do not offer the possibility of changing products, inhibiting a product or add a new product once the mixture is made in the tank. When the tank is going to be filled, it is necessary to anticipate which is the precise application that will be made of the product it will contain the tank.

To partially alleviate these inconveniences, it They can use other systems called direct injection. These They are composed of a water tank and other smaller tanks which contain concentrated chemicals. Water is pumped of the large tank and on the road between the pump and the ramp of spraying, are injected under pressure, with the help of pumps, the chemicals needed for the treatment that has been provided. WO-97/02898 shows a device of this type. The latter has the disadvantage of fit hard to an existing sprayer and use complex techniques based on dispensers composed of pumps membrane associated with electronic components for control and regulation.

Injection systems are also known. direct that integrate the dosing pumps that are placed after of the main pump of the sprayer and work thanks to the pressure it provides. This solution is unreliable and is difficult to adapt to any sprayer. In addition, it does not offer no flexibility of use and cannot be automated from Reliable way to remotely program the quantity of product to dose.

Another drawback of the systems known direct injection spray, is that they produce significant load losses between the pump and the ramp spray. Because of this, to benefit from a pressure acceptable at the level of the spray ramp, it is not possible Dose numerous products. In practice, they are used in General two products.

The dosage of products in these systems It is difficult when low flow rates are requested. In these cases, the metering pump pressure is not constant and difficult Regulate the flow rate.

WO-89/10050 describes a spray device composed of a line of injection connected to chemical deposits and integrated in a closed circuit in which they are also A pump and a distribution system. A junction point allows introduce the base liquid into the closed circuit.

WO-99/39834 describes a spraying device in which one or more Chemicals are injected into a spray broth. This device is composed of a pump with an inlet hole and an outlet, as well as a loop tube that joins the inlet of the pump and the outlet. The chemical is introduced into the spray broth at the height of the loop with the help of a Venturi type system.

The known sprayers mentioned previously they are normally complicated and the rinsing of the Channels is long and heavy. The time it takes for him Maintenance of these devices is important. That is, for installing and adjusting the spray takes a long time.

Another drawback of these known systems is that the pumps or venturi systems used do not allow injection of very viscous products. When they should be sprayed Products of this type are mixed directly in the tank water, which implies the problems mentioned above.

The invention to be presented has for purpose to offer a sprayer with the simplest design possible and that allows to realize a dosage of chemical product without contamination of the carrier product, this being generally the Water. Advantageously, this sprayer also allows to use viscous products without mixing them directly in the main tank In addition, this sprayer allows a precise dosage of the chemical.

For this purpose, this invention proposes a spray device consisting of a main tank with the carrier product. At least one chemical tank intended to be mixed with the carrier product. A ramp of spraying or similar, as well as a pump located after main tank, which will allow to send the product under pressure main tank carrier towards the spray ramp or Similary.

According to the invention, there are means provided for create a calibrated depression between the main tank outlet of the carrier product and the pump inlet and each of the chemical tanks is connected to an injection line which is between the main carrier product tank and the pump, thanks to means that allow injection in this line of chemical found in the chemical tank correspondent.

In this way, the dosage of the Chemicals that have to be dosed is done by depression. The product is sucked into the injection line and is useless to provide a supplementary pump to come to inject the product in the circuit where the carrier product circulates.

The depression created is calibrated. This depression does not have to be fixed, but it is known throughout moment, for example depending on the flow rate of the carrier liquid.

The means provided to create a depression they are composed, for example, by a non-return valve, but are you can use any other means that allows you to create a depression.

In the spray device according to the invention, the means provided for injecting the chemical into the injection line preferably has an outlet through the The pure chemical intermittently comes out. In this way, an accurate dosage of the chemical that It is pulverized.

In one embodiment, the device spraying is composed of a two-branch hydraulic system parallel between the main tank of the carrier product and the bomb. A first branch composed of the means that allow to create calibrated depression and the second one is the line of injection.

In this case, the back end of the line injection is advantageously attached to the rear end of the First branch by two injectors mounted in parallel. One of the injectors is an injector that has a calibrated hole. This allows to permanently calculate the opening time of the product injectors and take into account the changing viscosity of the products that are sprayed.

A preferred embodiment variant of the spraying device according to the invention, provides that it is composed of a two-branch hydraulic system in parallel between the main carrier product tank and the pump. The first branch integrates the means that allow to create the calibrated depression. The means that allow the injection of the chemical are presented each time in the form of a two-way valve and one outlet, one inlet of each valve is connected to a point located just before the second branch, the second inlet of each valve is connected to the corresponding chemical tank, the outlet of each valve is connected to a point located just after the second branch and the valve lets in, or carrier liquid, or chemical without mixing the products.

Preferably, the spraying device It is composed of an integrated rinse that has, for example, a a rinse tank with a rinse valve and connected, of a part, at a point after the pump, between it and the ramp of spraying, and to each chemical tank and on the other hand, to the injection line by means of an injector.

To ensure a good mix of the solution that is sprayed, conveniently at least one static homogenizer before the pump.

To know the flow rate of the carrier product, you can place a flowmeter at the outlet of the tank pump principal.

In order to know better the flow of the chemicals that are injected, the injection line has The advantage of a pressure sensor. Preferably this line of Injection is tilted horizontally.

To perform device administration spray, the means that allow product injection chemical in the injection line, it is possible, for example, to connect sensors and valves to an electronic console that controls the opening and closing of the injection means and possibly of the valves depending on the information received, on the one hand, by the sensors and on the other, by the operator.

The characteristics and advantages of this invention They are highlighted in the description below. By For example, the accompanying schematic drawing:

Figure 1: our schematically a first embodiment of the sprayer according to the invention.

Figure 2: shows a variant of Figure 1 of Sprayer realization.

Figure 1 shows mainly a main tank 2, a secondary tank 4, a device rinse 6, a container 8 of chemical for spraying, a pump 10, as well as a spray ramp 12. It is represented in there is an electronic console 14 that controls the sprayer.

A flowmeter 16 is located just after of the main tank 2. The latter is intended to be filled with a carrier liquid, in most cases it is water. From this moment and for the rest of the description it is assumed that this Liquid is water. The flowmeter 16 allows to know the amount of water consumed This flowmeter is optional and can be consider placing it on another side of the sprayer, for example before the spray ramp 12. In this first case, this Flowmeter allows to know the amount of solution sprayed. If the amount of product injected into the water is known, this it is equivalent to knowing the amount of water consumed or the amount of spray solution.

After flowmeter 16, the circuit Hydraulic sprayer represented in the drawing, this composed of a branch followed by two branches. A first branch, which will be called injection line 18, while the second branch it will be called load loss line 20. Injection line 18 and the load loss line 20 is joined at a point 22 which is the junction point after lines 18 and 20. This point is found before pump 10. Injection line 18 is preferably that it is tilted horizontally.

Next to pump 10, there is a pressure regulating device 24 that sends the solution pumped by pump 10, well towards spray ramp 12, either to a return conduit 26 that eventually leads to a part of the solution pumped to the inlet of the pump 10, between it and the junction point 22.

After pressure regulating device 24, in the direction of the spray ramp 12, there is a distributor 28 which allows the solution to be sent, or to the entire spray ramp 12, or towards a section of ramp 30. Before each section of ramp 30 and after distributor 28 is located always a static homogenizing device 32.

In the line of loss of load 20 is only a load that allows to create a calibrated depression of the order of a few tenths of a bar between the main tank exit 2 and the pump inlet 10. This load is formed, for example, by a non-return valve 34, but it can also be a chewing gum, A filter or other device. The depression created is not necessarily constant, but its variations, for example, depending on the flow measured by the flowmeter 16, they are known.

A calibrated depression is created between the flowmeter 16 and pump 10. This is also found in the injection line 18. At the entrance of this injection line 18, that is, on the side of the flowmeter 16, it is located in a principle, an injector 36, for water from tank 2. After this injector 36, always in the injection line 18, is connected four injectors 38, 40, 42 and 44.

The number of injectors placed on it injection line determines the number of different products that are they can inject into the water that circulates between the main tank 2 and the spray ramp 12.

In Figure 1, the first injector after water injector 36, allows to inject into the injection line 18 the product that is in the secondary tank 4. It is of a phytosanitary product. Tank 4 is a classic tank like those currently in spray systems to direct injection. A tank of this type is known by Professionals and trade is not described in this document.

The second injector 40 is connected to the rinsing device 6 whose operation is described more ahead.

The third injector 42 is connected to a container 8. It is an original container of a concentrated phytosanitary product. A plug with two outputs allows the operator to have no contact with the contents of the package 8. This cap has a quick connect device with a shutter allowing placement the concentrated product container, the cap down, when Make the spray. This allows to avoid the problems due at shaking while allowing to completely empty the container 8.

This plug is conical to which a gasket is fixed resistant to the product contained in the container 8 thus preventing product leaks. This cap is fitted to container 8, by example, by means of an elastic webbing or an adjustable webbing hooking up to two ears located on top of the cap. A quick clamp coupler with shutter to suck the products as well as a tube that goes from the bottom of the drum crosses the plug. The tube that goes from the bottom of the drum is topped by a 360 ° rotating nozzle that allows an air intake during spray and rinse with clean water from container 8 at the end of Spraying This tube can be topped off by a quick clamp coupler 46 to connect the water arrival of rinse.

The fourth injector 44 is intended to allow introduce atmospheric pressure air into the injection line 18.

Each of the injectors 36 to 44 is constituted in such a way that it is, or completely open, or completely closed. The amount of chemical that passes through each of these injectors depends on the opening time of the corresponding injector. Thus, if the injector opens to regular intervals, since the injector outlet depression is known, then the flow rate of the chemical that is known passes through the corresponding injector. This product flow chemical mainly depends on the viscosity of the product chemical, this depending on the temperature and obviously of the injector.

Injection line 18 ends in two branches parallel that each connect the junction point 22 with the line of loss of load 20. Each of these branches has an injector 48, 50. The injector 48 of the first branch is a classic injector, while the second injector 50 has a calibrated hole that allows to calculate at any time the opening time of the product injectors and thus allow for viscosity changing over time of the products that are sprayed.

Finally, in the injection line 18, find a pressure sensor 52 that allows to constantly know the pressure that reigns in the injection line 18.

As outlined in the only figure, the electronic console 14 used to control operation of the sprayer assembly, is connected to each of the injectors as well as distributor 28, flowmeter 16 and pressure sensor 52. Thus, the sprayer described previously uses the depression generated by the pump 10 to perform the injection of products that mix with water to get the solution to be sprayed. The technique used allows use a single pump, the main pump 10. This allows free from the more or less high pressures generated by the pump 10 respecting the safety of the use of Phytosanitary product used, that is, no anomaly can put the tanks under pressure, or the containers containing the pure phytosanitary products. In addition, the technique put into practice allows to simply automate the rinse of the tanks and of the packaging of phytosanitary products and it is possible Effectively and quickly spread the rinse water on product spray areas Phytosanitary

The electronic console 14 integrates a microprocessor that allows to open one by one or simultaneously the set of water injectors 36 and product 38, 40, 42 with in order to form the right mixture. An algorithm allows calibration constantly the opening time of the injectors and of self check the proper functioning of the injectors analyzing the pressure set in the line of injection 18 depending on the opening of the injectors.

The electronic console 14 is composed also by a communication interface with the operator. It can provide for this purpose the presence of a keyboard and a screen, which are not represented. The operator can then program, for example, the amount of product to be sprayed by hectare. You can also choose the products you want to add to dissolution It is also possible to choose the use of a product in a single part of the field to be treated.

The electronic console 14 may also contain an alarm system that allows warning of the defects of the operation during spraying. In this way, it is possible indicate that a tank is empty, that an injector is defective or There is a problem with the pump.

Figure 2 shows a variant of the embodiment of the sprayer of figure 1. The modifications between the two embodiments are at the level of the line of 18 injection and injectors. Figure 2 takes the same references that figure 1 for items that do not change.

The main difference lies in the choice of the 38 ', 40' and 42 'three-way injectors that replace the two-way injectors 38, 40 and 42. Because of this, the injectors 36, 48 and 50 can be abandoned. The injectors 38 ', 40' and 42 'of the Figure 2 each have two inputs and one output. An entry is connected to the "tank" 4 or 8 of the chemical corresponding or to the rinse device. The output of each injector 38 ', 40' and 42 'is connected to junction point 22 of the injection line 18 with the load line 20. Preferably, a chewing gum is provided at the output level of each injector so at the entry level of each chemical or liquid from cleared up. This allows better control of product flow chemical and carrier liquid.

In this embodiment, the injectors 38 ', 40' and 42 'let in, or water coming from tank 2, or chemical (or rinse water) that comes from tanks 4, 54 or 8. These injectors cannot be in a position where the product Chemist continuously mixes with water. The output of these injectors is, or directly connected to an input or directly connected to the other input.

The rinsing device 6 allows to clarify the 8 container of the chemical to be sprayed as well as the tank secondary 4 before spraying, but allows also perform a final rinse of all containers and tanks voids of phytosanitary products at the end of spraying.

The two figures show how the device rinse 6 is connected, on the one hand to the distributor 28, and by other to container 8. Obviously there is a connection, which is not represented in the drawing for clarity reasons, with tank 4 to allow cleaning.

For the opening and closing set of the injectors 38, 40 and 42 of the injection line 18, a first rinse of tank 4 and container 8. The solution relatively concentrated that is obtained from this first rinse fill tank 54, associated with rinsing device 6. This dissolution spreads over the agricultural area, taking into account the possible concentration of the product in order not to exceed the desired concentration

Once the rinse can 54 is empty, a rinse valve 56 located in the upper part of the drum, It allows to clean the sprayer assembly perfectly.

The electronic console 14 controls all this cleaning process and guide the operator in the actions that he must undertake. At the end of the process, the electronic console 14 informs through its communication interface at the end of cleared up.

Of course, the present invention is not limits only to the described and represented embodiment, but which includes all the execution variants and / or combinations of its different elements, in the subsequent claims.

So for example, the number of injectors over The injection line may vary. You can plan to connect to the injection line only tanks in which the products to be sprayed or only containers originals The coupling device provided between a container of product and the corresponding injector described above, has given as an example and can be replaced by any other device that allows to take the product out of the container.

To create a depression between the tank main and pump, you can consider using another device other than a non-return valve. You can use a calibrated throttling or a pump that allows obtaining the desired pressure difference.

The described embodiment provides a ramp Spray consisting of two branches. Of course it is possible use a monobloc ramp or have more than two branches. At described case of the two branches, the distributor is composed, by example, of a three way valve. If there are more than three branches, it you may consider using a valve type distributor electronics that allow choosing the desired branch. In the case where it is not necessary to choose a branch, you can provide a branch simple non-return valve.

Claims (11)

1. Spray device including a main tank (2) of the carrier product, at least one tank (4, 8) of chemical intended to be mixed with the product carrier, a spray ramp (12) as well as a pump (10) located after the main tank (2) allowing shipping under press the carrier product of the main tank onto the ramp of spray. characterized by the means (34) provided to create a calibrated depression between the main tank outlet (2) of the carrier product and the pump inlet (10) and by the connection of each chemical tank (4, 8) to an injection line (18) that is between the main tank (2) and the pump (10) by means of devices (38, 40, 42) that allow injecting in this line the chemical that is in the tank of corresponding chemical. 2. Spray device according to claim 1, characterized by the presence, in the means provided for injecting the chemical into the injection line, of an outlet through which the pure chemical product intermittently exits. 3. Spray device according to claims 1 or 2, characterized in that it is composed of a hydraulic system with two parallel branches (18, 20) between the main tank (2) of the carrier product and the pump (10), a first branch ( 20) that integrates the means (34) that allow to create the calibrated depression and the second branch, being the injection line (18). 4. Spray device according to claim 3, characterized in that the end that follows the injection line (18) is connected to the end that follows the first branch (20) by two injectors (48, 50) mounted in parallel, one of the injectors (50) have a calibrated hole. 5. Spray device according to claims 1 or 2, characterized in that it is composed of a hydraulic system having two parallel branches (18, 20) between the main tank (2) of the carrier product and the pump (10), for being composed the first branch (20) by the means (34) that allow to create the calibrated depression, because the means that allow the injection of the chemical are presented in the form of two-way valves and one exit, by the entrance of each connected valve to a point before the second branch (18), by connecting the second inlet of each valve to the corresponding chemical tank, by connecting the outlet of each valve to a point after the second branch (18) and because depending on the valve, it lets in, or carrier liquid, or chemical without mixing the products. 6. Spray device according to claims 1 to 5, characterized in that it has an integrated rinse device (6) composed of a rinse tank (54) provided with a rinse valve (56) and connected, on the one hand after the pump (10) between it and the spray ramp (12), and to each chemical tank (4, 8), and on the other hand to the injection line (18) by means of an injector (40). 7. Spray device according to claims 1 to 6, characterized by having at least one static homogenizer (32) after the pump (10). 8. Spraying device according to claims 1 to 7, characterized in that it is provided with a flow meter (16) at the outlet of the main tank (2). 9. Spraying device according to claims 1 to 8, characterized by having a pressure regulating mechanism (24) after the pump (10) and by a return line (26) connecting the pressure regulator to a point located before the pump (10) and after the injection line (18). 10. Spray device according to claims 1 to 9, characterized by having the injection line (18) inclined relative to the horizontal. 11. Spray device according to claims 1 to 10, characterized by having the means (38, 40, 42) that allow the injection of chemical into the injection line, being possible to connect sensors (16, 52) and valves ( 28) to an electronic console (14) that controls the opening and closing of the injection means and the valves according to the information received on the one hand, from the sensors and on the other, from the operator.